Russia-US presidents’ meeting on UN General Assembly sidelines not negotiated yet - Ushakov

MOSCOW, August 31. /TASS/. Russia has not sent to the White House any request for a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York City in September, Russian presidential aide Yuri Ushakov said on Monday. "No, Russia has not made [such a request]," he told reporters. According to Ushakov, the American side has also not requested a bilateral meeting. He said that Obama would attend and make an address at the UN General Assembly session. However, the Kremlin aide said that New York is not the only international venue where the Russian and U.S. leaders will be present this autumn. Also, a meeting of the Group of Twenty (G20) and a summit of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum will be held in November. So, there are venues for contacts. "The leaders’ meetings are important and always valuable, and naturally, we are not refusing from any contacts, on the contrary, we call for an intensive dialogue with all countries," Ushakov said. "But the possible meetings in New York are now at the stage coordination and development, and any specific talk of this would be so far premature," said the Kremlin official. Read more